A Dance under the Stars
by Awesome Rapidash
Summary: She is seen by many as an outcast and an evil woman. But to Jack, she is someone very special. What will happen when he asks her to the Starry Night Festival? Entry in the Village Square Contest.


_**A/N: **This is my entry for this month's Village Square contest. The theme: Dance. She is seen by many as an outcast and an evil woman. But to Jack she is someone very special. What will happen when he asks her to the Starry Night Festival? _

_**Disclaimer: ** I own no part of the Harvest Moon franchise. _

_**A Dance under the Stars**_

Jack waited anxiously in the living room of his farmhouse, pacing back and forth across the dark blue carpeting that lined the floor of his dwelling. Tonight was the annual Starry Night Festival in town but that wasn't what had the young farmer's nerves jumbled. It was something much more than that.

A sigh escaped the brown haired man's lips as he glanced up at the clock ticking on the wall. "Five minutes before six," he muttered nervously before taking a few tentative steps towards the front door. Words echoed clearly in his mind… _"If you want me to go with you, then meet me outside your home at six sharp!"_ Watching as the minute hand neared the six o'clock hour; Jack took a deep breath, reached out and opened the door. Stepping out into the brisk night air he was greeted by a tall woman dressed almost exclusively in dark clothing. Her long sandy blond hair fluttered gently in the breeze. Shimmering crimson eyes looked back upon him.

"I see that you are punctual Jack," the Witch Princess chuckled. "I like that in a person you know."

Jack felt a wave of relief wash over him. "It's nice to see you too Tianna. I'm glad that you accepted my invitation to the festival."

"And why shouldn't I accept?" the blond asked rhetorically. "No one tells me what to do! I can do whatever I want after all!"

Jack gulped and quickly searched for the right words to say. "I didn't mean it that way," he stammered. "What I meant to say is that, well… the festival is in town. And I know how you feel about most of the town's residents."

"Those selfish fools!" she spat back angrily. "They are so blinded by their own prejudices…., incompetent morons I wouldn't give them the satisfaction of my presence!"

Jack stepped carefully over to the fuming girl and placed his arms gently around the still angry witch, pulling her into a soft hug. "Calm down Tianna, I know how they tend to upset you and that's why I was so surprised that you accepted my invitation knowing that the event is held in town."

The Witch Princess took several deep breaths of cool night air to help her calm down. Wrapping her arms around the farmer she gave him a smile. "Who says that we have to go to town anyway? We don't need them to enjoy ourselves," the blond cooed with a smile.

"I don't understand? If we don't go to the festival, how will we be able to enjoy ourselves?"

Tianna rolled her crimson eyes in disbelief at how clueless her male friend could be sometimes. "Look up at the sky Jack; the stars are not just shining over the town, they are shining over your farm as well. We don't need to put up with all the crap in town to see and enjoy them!"

Jack looked up and indeed the satin black night sky above him was dotted with thousands of twinkling lights. "Yeah, you're right… they are!"

"Of course they are silly! What, do you think they would only shine over the town or something! Even my annoying Goddess sister can't make something like that happen!"

The farmer managed to laugh at little. He had to admit that the Witch Princess was right. The point of the Starry Night Festival was to be able to look at the stars above with someone close and dear to you. This is probably why, since Starry Night past, that couples and families in the villages would chose their spots for the festival. It was rare they were in one spot. Some people even celebrated at home with a feast, and then to watch the stars afterwards.

The two went silent as they looked up at the night sky, gazing at the sparkling stars. The scene was very mesmerizing. Jack knew this was something you rarely saw in the city. He originally came from the big city, but all of the lights made it next to impossible to see any stars. Sure, you might see one on occasion, but it doesn't happen very often. Maybe that was why he didn't expect there to be stars over his farm. Even though he should have known that there would be, up until now, he hadn't seen any of the thousands of stars above his home.

Tianna smiled softly and then began to sing, which surprised Jack for only a moment. But he couldn't help but smile as he listened to the sweet notes. Anyone who had stereotypical thoughts about the blond would not have believed that she would be singing anything like this. But the farmer knew better than that.

Without invitation, Jack reached out and grabbed Tianna's hand. Had it been anyone else, she would have pulled away or something. But instead, a small smile crossed her lips. She continued her song as they turned to face each other, and then began to dance.

Their steps were light, crunching under the white snow and the dance itself wasn't very complex. But that didn't matter to either of them. The most important thing was being able to spend this moment together.

After a while, Tianna stopped singing, but their dance continued. Jack looked into the witch's crimson eyes and said, "That was such a pretty song."

"Thank you," the Witch Princess remarked, and sighed a little bit. "It's a song my mother taught me. I've known it ever since I was little."

The farmer smiled and pulled her closer. Tianna blushed slightly, but then couldn't help a grin of her own. She knew she had been right to accept Jack's invitation.

"Let's keep dancing," Jack suggested as he continued to move his feet.

Tianna just nodded her head, and rested it against his chest. They continued well into the night, unaware that someone was watching nearby. The green haired figure laughed lightly and softly, so as not to disturb the pair.

"Jack… take care of my sister for me," she whispered as she disappeared into the night.


End file.
